Book - The Red Tent

My mother handed me "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant to read on a whim, only remembering that she had read it before and enjoyed it. However, this was such an appropriate book for me to read I can't believe I hadn't come across it sooner. No, not because I spend my "moon times" in a crimson tent with fellow females (although I kind of like that idea, in a weird way). I'll explain more in the Read More section, but for now, simply know that if you are looking for a moving book about mothers and daughters and like the idea of "woman's space," you might enjoy this very peaceful read. I certainly did.

Why was this book so appropriate for me to read? For one, it's "historical" fiction, taking a bible story and expounding on just a couple of lines of verse. Historical fiction is awesome, and if you have any recommendations for great books in this genre, please share in the comments. For another, this book is about Dinah, daughter of Leah and Jacob, from the Book of Geneses, and I have been reading the bible off and on throughout this year. (Don't remember why I'm reading the bible? Here ya go.) And lastly, it has a slew of stories about midwives and birthing and I am an absolute birth junkie. If you are into any one of those three things (historical fiction, the bible, or birth stories) then this book would be worth your time.
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Book: The Year of Living Biblically

I just finished A.J. Jacobs' "The Year of Living Biblically" and I loved it.  In this book, A.J. pursues living by Biblical law, attempting to obey every law printed in Scripture.  

The take-home is that everyone is a "Cafeteria Christian" (or Jew).  This is a common term used by fundamentalists to discriminate against more liberal Christians.  They pick and choose what rules to follow, and leave the rest on the table.  However, once you read all the rules the Bible truly presents, you understand that it is almost impossible to follow every rule and you'd be hard pressed to meet even the most die-hard Fundamentalist Christian who can keep up to code.  For example, they would not be able to say "Thursday" because that day is named after a Greek God, and you shall not mutter the names of other Gods.    And furthermore, if they did claim to keep to each law presented in the Bible, those laws are often up to an incredible amount of interpretation, and their adherence would be highly debatable.  

This book has inspired me to read the good-book, because I never have.  I'll let you know how that goes, too. 

In the mean-time, might I also recommend Jacobs' first book, "The Know-it-All," which is about his mission to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica series.   

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